Fabricated cylinder head and silencer chamber assembly for a refrigerant compressor



United States Patent O U.S. Cl. 230-232 6 `Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An assembly of prefabricated components or elements made of metallic sheet material assembled in fixed assembly in which solely three elements jointly define a cylinder head, a suction valve chamber and pressure or discharge silencer chambers provided internally thereof with a throttle passage communicating between two discharge silencer chambers.

This invention relates generally to hermetically sealed refrigerant compressors in which the cylinder head is combined with silencer chambers, particularly on the delivery or discharge side and more particularly it relates to a fabricated cylinder head and silencer chamber assembly.

It is known to provide the suction valve chamber and the delivery valve chamber of the cylinder head of refrigerant compressors, as well as the two silencer charnbers, within one and the same casting. However, in casting constructions of this kind, sealing of the silencer chambers and the provision of connections from and to these chambers can only be carried out as subsequent operations. The connections, are made for example between silencer chambers as bores or holes and--if specific throttle ducts or passages are required-by the insertion of small tubes in the bores. Thus, the finished assembly consists of a considerable number of individual components, necessitating a complex assembly effort.

It is also known to provide silencer chambers with connections therebetween by soldering together two superimposed sheet metal blanks with appropriate outward bulges. This is a convenient, inexpensive way of producing them. However, up to now, combination of such an assembly with the cylinder head has not been possible. Moreover, it has proved difficult to provide reproduceable throttle passages or ducts.

A principal object of the present invention is the provision of a combined cylinder head-silencer assembly comprising only a small number of components and capable of being assembled to a state of functional readiness with a minimum of operations, preferably only one operation, and permitting the arrangement of a desired number of throttle ducts or passages between chambers.

A feature of the assembly according to the invention, is the use of two sheet metal elements which, in known manner, produce at least one silencer chamber between them and have an extension forming the cylinder head and between these two sheet metal elements is interposed a third, preferably thinner, sheet metal element which separates the pressure side from the suction side in the cylinder head and, in conjunction with at least one of the outer sheet metal elements forms throttle passages or ducts in the silencer system.

Only three elements are needed for producing the silencer chambers, cylinder head, partitions, throttle ducts or passages and all the other components needed for carryice ing out the functions of the combined assembly. These three elements may be connected or fixed to one another in a simple soldering operation. The addition of the third sheet metal elements to the two outer sheet metal elements makes possible the required separation within the cylinder head and the provision of throttle passages or ducts of desired resistance, because these ducts can be distributed over the entire base surface of the silencer chambers.

At least part of the periphery of one of the outer sheet metal elements is bent into a rim or rim portions and the other two sheet metal elements abut at least partly on the inner edge of the rim with their circumferential edges. By means of the rim portion or rim portions the other two sheet rnetal blanks are positionally fixed, so that they can be easily and accurately connected to one another. Furthermore, it is an advantage if the sheet metal element, of the assembly, facing the valve plate is provided with holes for accommodating the delivery valve support pins mounted on the valve plate. This offers additional support to these pins, without additional means having to be provided. Moreover, the cylinder head and the silencer chambers are provisionally supported during assembly.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention the silencer chambers extend in known manner beside the drive motor. Up to now, special support means had to be provided in this case. Such support means may now be omitted because the cylinder head is mounted on the refrigerant compressor cylinder.

Another advantage is achieved if the part of the sheet metal blank facing the valve plate is bulged into the shape of a bridge in the delivery valve region, so that a stop is provided for the spring plate of the pressue valve. ln this case the projecting part of the sheet metal blank assumes an additional function for which a separate cornponent was hitherto required.

Other features and advantages of the cylinder headsilencer chamber assembly in accordance with the present invention will be better understood as described in the following specification and appended claims in conjunction with the following drawings in which:

FIG. 1, is a plan view of the combined cylinder headsilencer chamber assembly of the invention, with the upper sheet metal blank removed; and

FIG. 2, is a longitudinal section view of an enlarged scale of the assembly of FIG. 1 and taken along the section line A-A. I

An assembly according to the invention comprises a first lower sheet metal element 1, a second upper sheet metal element 2 and, between them, a thinner third sheet metal element 3. The sheet metal element 1 has a rim 4 on the inner surface of which bear peripheral edges of the other two sheet metal elements. The limiting rim may also consist of separate lugs. The metal sheet elements 1-3, are fabricated in advance in a simple punch and stamping operation, and are brazed together in the assembly positions illustrated.

The first sheet metal element 3 rests on a valve plate 5 of a cylinder 6, of a refrigerant compressor shown fragmentarily, and is connected thereto. Apertures 7, 8 lead to the suction valve and an aperture 9 is situated in the region of a delivery valve plate 32. Within this aperture is situated a bulge 33 serving as a stop for the valve plate 3-2. Other apertures 10i, 11 have only been indicated by broken llines in FIG. 1. They lead to silencer chambers on the suction side, not shown, which are situated on the side of the cylinder. Furthermore, two holes 26 are provided through which pins 27 extend. The pins are mounted on the valve plate 5 and engage the delivery valve plate 32.

The second sheet metal element 2 has a first bulge 12 which forms a delivery or suction Valve chamber 13, a second bulge 14 which forms a first silencer chamber 15 onrthe pressure or discharge side, and a third bulge 16 which forms a second silencer chamber 17 on the pressure or discharge side. Between these bulges the sheet metal element 2 reaches nearly Vup tothe. sheet metal.

element 1, except for two troughs 18 and 19 through which communication is established between the chambers. vA delivery pipe 20 is led out from the Wall of this sheet metal element 2.

The third sheet metal element 3 has two bulges 21, 22 in the cylinder head region which provide two valve chambers 23, '24 on the suction side, separated from the valve chamber 13 on the pressure side. These bulges are shaped in such a way that they lead from the silencer connections 10, 11 on the suction side to the suction valve apertures 7, 8. In between, the sheet metal element 3 has an aperture 25, to provide a connection to the delivery valve aperture 9.

At the other end of the third sheet metal element 3 is provided a trough 28 which extends in a series of U- bends in four parts in the lower portion of the discharge side silencer 17 of the compressor. As initial portion 29 of this trough is a passage leading from a silencer chamber A15 to the other silencer chamber 17 and starts with `an opening 30. A similar opening 31 is provided at the other end. These troughs, together with the first sheet metal blank 1, form a very long throttle duct or passage. Because of its length this passage may have a comparatively large cross section, and slight cross-sectional variations, unavoidable in stamping and soldering operations, are of little importance. Furthermore, the bottom of the silencer chamber 1S may be provided with such a throttle passage, for example a duct leading from chamber 13 to chamber 15.

In operation, the gaseous refrigerant passes from the silencer chambers on the suction side through apertures 10, 11 into the suction -valve chambers 23, 24 and further through the apertures 7, 8 into the cylinder. The cornpressed refrigerant passes through the aperture 9 into the delivery valve chamber 13, from there through the connection duct 18 into the delivery silencer chamber 15, and further through the throttle duct 28 into the delivery silencer chamber 17, from where it is discharged through the delivery or discharge pipe 20.

While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and described it will be understood that many modifications and changes can be made within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

What we claim and desire to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A cylinder head-silencer chamber assembly for refrigerant compressors having a cylinder and a valve plate,

said assembly comprising, three separately fabricated elements made of metallic sheet material assembled as said assembly mountable on said compressor cylinder and delining in use a cylinder head, silencer chambers, and one of said elements having a plurality of corrugationsV delining in conjunction with another of said three elements a throttle passage connecting two of said silencer chambers.

2. A silencer chamber assembly according to claim 1, in which said elements comprise a configured plate having a rim, a second element and a third element overlying said plate jointly defining therewith said silencer chambers and said third element jointly defining therewith said chambers and said throttle passage communicating with two of said chambers, and said second and third elements having peripheries engaging said rim locating the elements in proper relative positions.

3. A silencer chamber assembly according to claim 1, in which one of said elements comprises at least one rim portion, the others of said elements having edges engaging said rim portion for locating thereof in proper relative positions in said assembly.

4. A silencer chamber assembly according to claim 1, in which said plate comprises a surface for mounting said assembly on said valve plate with said cylinder head cooperative with said valve plate and cylinder.

5. A silencer chamber assembly according to claim 4, in which said valve plate comprises a valve spring plate and in which said element comprising said plate comprises a stop surface for stopping said valve spring plate upon lifting thereof.

6. In combination, a compressor having a cylinder and a valve plate thereon, a combination cylinder head and silencer chamber assembly comprising three independently prefabricated elements assembled into said assembly, said elements comprising a plate made of metallic sheet material, a second element made of metallic sheet material defining jointly therewith a suction valve chamber and discharge silencer chambers, and within said discharge silencer chambers a third element made of metallic sheet material having a plurality of corrugations defining jointly with said plate a throttle passage providing communication between two of said discharge silencer chambers.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,823,850 2/1958 Hintze 230-58 2,883,099 4/1959 Hintze 230--58 2,952,400 9/1960 Hintze 230-58 ROBERT M. WALKER, Primary Examiner 

